Container for automobile license certificates



Nov. 5, 1940. 2,220,310

' CONTAINER FOR AUTOMOBILE LICENSE CERTIFICATES S. K. WO OD Filed April 24, 1939 3nnentor rzzad 0 I I, r I! I (Ittornggfi' Patented Nov. 5, 1940 UNITED STATES CONTAINER FOB, AUTOMOBILE LICENSE CERTIFICATES Strand K. Wood, Hutchinson, Kans. Application April 24, 1939, Serial No. 269,572

Claims.

This invention relates to certificate holders for use in connection with the display of ownership certificates, drivers licenses, or automobile licenses, and has for its general object to produce a double holder of this kind having a pair of pockets or containers, one being provided with a transparent window and the other being concealed, but readily available to traffic authorities or police.

A further object of the invention is to produce a certificate holder so made that the transparent plate retaining means also acts as a centering support for the card or plate to be displayed through the window thus provided.

Another object of the invention is to produce a construction having means for mutilating the certificate should the holder be opened after the certificate has been placed in position.

'Another object of theinvention is to produce "g a construction with a concealed lock, whereby the certificate holder is held locked against unauthorized opening, although, if desired, an exposed lock may be used.

A still further object is to provide a certificate g5 holder of thegeneral' character disclosed which readily lends itself to being detachably mounted on the steering column or post and thus avoids the necessity of drilling holes in the instrument board or in some other part of the car.

With the general objects named in View and others as will hereinafter appear, the invention consists in certain novel and useful features of construction and organization of parts as hereinafter described and claimed; and in order that it may be fully understood, reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Figure l is a face view of a device embodying the invention.

Figure 2 is a top edge View of the same.

Figure 3 is a rear view of the holder.

Figure 4 is a front view of the holder with the cover plate partially slid from position.

Figure 5 is an enlarged longitudinal section on the line V--V of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is an enlarged perspective view of a modified lock construction for holding the two parts of the holder against accidental opening movement.

In the drawing, where like reference characters identify corresponding parts in all of the figures, 1 indicates a back or supporting plate which may be secured in semi-permanent relation to a motor car, but, by preference, is provided with an adjustable metal strap 2 welded or otherwise secured to the back of said plate, by

means of which the plate maybe' clamped to a steering column of amotor car. If the device is of that type adapted for mutilation of acertifi cate on its withdrawal from the holder, the plate I is recessed as at 3, and a spring finger 4, ten- 5 sioned to project outwardly "from the recess, is spot-welded or otherwise secured within the recess. In addition to the above, the back plate I, if it is desired to have a. concealed lock, is formed with a second depression or recess 5 to receive a spring locking tongue hereinafter mentioned, unlocking ofthe tongue being possible by insertion of a pointed instrumentthrough a hole 6 in the back wall .of the plate I. Welded or otherwise secured tothe back of the plate I is a flanged plate 'I to form apccket between its inner face and the back of said plate 'I into which a ticket or the like containing a list of trafiic violations or other data may be stored for ready access to an authorized oflicer. l

The certificate holder is completed by a second plate or cover member: 8 having coplanarflanges 9 along three of its sides for sliding reception between the hook flanges -I ll formed on three edges of the base plate I, the fourth side of the cover plate 8 having a hook-flange II for overlapping behind the cover plate. By stamping a series of rearwardly extending ears I2 out of the base plate I, to overlap behind the flange II of the cover plate, the flanged edge of the latter is reinforced against efforts to bend said flange in an unlawful endeavor to open the container. These ears also act as obstructions to the accidental dislodgement of a certificate or card contained in the pocket formed by the plate I.

The greater area of the cover plate 8 is cut away to form a window opening which is closed by a transparent plate I3 of any suitable material, said plate being held in position by engagement under a series of ears I l pressed rearwardly out of the metal of the frame or cover plate. By preference, these ears are spaced sufii- -cient from the proximate face of the transparent plate I3 to make it possible to slip the edges of a license certificate I5 or the like under said ears, whereby the ears perform the double function of securing the transparent plate as well as acting as centralizing means for the card to be displayed through the window. If it is desired to employ a concealed lock for holding the cover plate in position, it will be provided with a locking tongue I6 tensioned to project rearwardly behind the certificate I5 and be automatically seated in the recess 5 when the cover plate is seated to lock the parts against unauthorized opening movement. When a sharp instrument is inserted through the opening 6 in the back plate I, the spring locking tongue I6 may be depressed out of the recess so that the two parts of the holder may be slid apart.

When it is not desired to have a concealed look, a spring latch member I! may be welded to the back plate, said latch having an offset portion [8 overlapping the flanged end H of the cover plate 8. When the latch is pressed rearwardly to clear the cover plate 8 it will be evident that said plate may be readily slid from position to place in or remove a certificate from the container.

I claim:

1. A certificate holder comprising a base plate having a pair of its opposite edges formed with parallel hook flanges, a cover plate having edge flanges slidingly received in the hook flanges of the base plate, said cover plate being embossed outwardly from the base plate except at its flanged edges and having a window opening in said embossed area, a series of ears struck from the cover plate around said window opening and parallel to and spaced from its inner side, but spaced from the plane of thebase plate, and a transparent plate having its edges received between the ears and the back of said cover plate, said ears being spaced rearwardly of'the transparent plate to leave space for the securing and centering of a certificate between the ears and the back of said transparent plate.

2. In a certificate holder, a base plate having hook flanges along a pair of its opposite sides, a cover plate adapted for sliding engagement with said hook flanges and having a hook flange for overlapping the back wall of the base plate when the cover plate is in operative position, and a window opening, a transparent plate closing the window opening, the base plate having a longitudinal pocket at its rear side opening toward the hook flange of the cover plate, and an angle ear receiving said hook flange and disposed in coplanar relation to the open end of the pocket and a distance from the latter less than its length.

3. In a certificate holder, a base plate having hook flanges along a pair of its opposite sides, a cover plate adapted for sliding engagement with said hook flanges and having a hook flange for overlapping the back wall of the base plate when the cover plate is in operative position, and a window opening, a transparent plate closing the window opening, the base plate also having a recess and longitudinal pocket at its rear side opening toward the hook flange of the cover plate, an angle ear receiving said hook flange and disposed in coplanar relation to the open end of the pocket and a distance from the latter less than its length,

and a repressible spring latch secured to the cover plate for engagement with said recess to prevent accidental separation of the cover plate from the base plate.

I 4. In a certificate holder, a base plate having angle ears at one end projecting rearwardly from and opening toward the adjacent end of the plate, a cover plate slidably connected to the base plate for "endwise movement and disposed at the front side of the base plate, and having an end hook flange receiving one end of the base plate and received by the said angle ears of the latter, means for preventing accidental relative shifting of the plates in an endwise direction tending to withdraw the hook flange of the cover plate from the base plate, and a pocket-forming plate secured to the rear side of the base plate and extending longitudinally thereof and in coplanar relation to the angle ears of the base plate.

5. A certificate holder, comprising a base plate, a cover plate fitting slidably on the base plate and provided with a window opening for exposure of a certificate between the plates, the cover plate having a hook flange to receive one end of the base plate and the latter an angle ear to receive said hook flange, the base plate also having a longitudinally extending pocket in alinement with and in coplanar relation to and distant less than its length from the angle ear and open at the end adjacent said ear, and a band secured to the base plate and adapted to serve as a support threfor.

STRAUD K. WOOD. 

